weapon

We had been talking about the most lethal Russian weapon that seemed like Ukraine fallen asleep. His answer is called Liutyi

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If drones have become The protagonists From the Ukraine War, the model that has marked Russia’s offensive offers no doubts: The Shaheds of Iranian origin, then converted into different versions assembled in MoscowThey are the basis of Russia’s offensives. And in Ukraine? There they also have been perfecting a device that has become key to attacks on critical objectives of the enemy. The strategic weapon of Ukraine. Yes, kyiv, aware of its lower industrial and resources capacity, has opted for a different approach: Use surgical attacks with drones of own manufacture against strategic objectives deeply located in Russian territory. The jewel of this strategy is the AN-196 Liutyia lodging ammunition system designed to achieve precision Critical facilities of military logistics, oil refineries, air bases and essential industrial centers for the Russian war effort. Development and technical characteristics. Dron Liutyi began to develop In 2022 by Antonov in collaboration with Ukroboronpromconceived as a long -range unidirectional attack vehicle. The first version weighed between 250 and 300 kilosmeasured 4.4 meters long with a wingspan of 6.7, and was promoted with a gasoline engine that moved a rear propeller. It incorporated a V -tail design to improve stability and aerodynamics, and initially carried 50 kilos of explosives at a range of 1,000 km. The most recent versions have practically doubled their benefits: increased load capacity to 75 kilos and a range of up to 2,000 km, for an estimated unit cost In 200,000 dollarsfigure greater than that of the Shahed but still much lower than that of a cruise missile. And more. Your navigation combines inertial and satellite systems In the initial phase, while in the final approach it resorts to artificial vision to execute evasive trajectories, dodge defenses and hit with precision. First operational deployments. The use of Liutyi was made visible in 2024 With deep attacks in Russian territory. In January, an attack against An oil tank In St. Petersburg, he was attributed to drone, as was the March attack against the Ryazan refinery that caused a great fire. In June, the Mozdok Air Basein Norte Osetia, which houses bombers Tu-22m3 and fighters MIG-31it was also beaten. These incidents showed that Ukraine was in a position to project power hundreds of kilometers from the front line. Expansion of your role. The improved Liutyi versions began to be used massively this year. On March 13, an attack reached a Gas pipeline control center In Sátov, affecting the Russian energy sector. In April, several waves of Liutyi impacted the base of the 112.ª missile brigade in Shuya, destroying facilities of command and barracks. In July, two Liutyi penetrated 1,400 kilometers to Izhevsk, where They hit the Kupol plantproducer of anti -aircraft Tor-m and Harpiya drones, causing significant damage. That same month, different videos They documented attacks against objectives in the Leningrad region, in the city of Pensa and at the Sochi airport, where a fuel tank was reached. These blows have had a double effect: disorganizing Russian logistics and forcing Kremlin to allocate resources to the defense of the rear. International response. Despite his successes, Ukraine faces the disadvantage of not being able to manufacture Liutyi in quantities comparable to Shahed’s mass production by Russia. External support is, therefore, crucial: Germany has committed investments to produce 500 additional unitswhich will allow the pace of operations. Thus, the Ukrainian strategy will continue based on the selective use of these drones, with emphasis on precision attacks and not saturation. To maintain its effectiveness, Liutyi must adapt continuously, incorporating advances in artificial intelligence, computer vision and electronic countermeasures resistance. Strategic role in war. In short, although less known than The ShahedLiutyi has become a symbol of Ukrainian capacity to innovate and hit in depth, eroding the perception of security in the interior of Russia. Their attacks have affected energy facilities, refineries, industrial plants and air bases, weakening critical infrastructures and forcing Moscow to disperse their defenses. In this way, the drone not only compensates (in part) the Ukrainian material inferiority in front of the Russian military industry, but also opens a new psychological and strategic front by demonstrating that no Russian area is out of reach. Thus, everything indicates that its role will continue to expand in the coming months, consolidating itself as one of the key weapons in the Strategy of Resistance and Counteroffensive of Ukraine. Image | Open Source In Xataka | Not that war in Ukraine has become a laboratory of the future, is that there are drones saving lives with bicycles In Xataka | If you want to learn to handle a combat drone, the best school is Ukraine. And there have been infiltrated Mexican narcos

China already has a robot that installs 1,000 solar panels per day. It is your weapon to continue dominating renewables

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The world is converting deserts into photovoltaic oasis. In recent years, we have stepped on the accelerator to achieve ambitious objectives of decarbonization (That the amount of energy consumed by AI are slowing down) And they are being built ‘Solar farms‘Absolutely demential. Many are in Chinacountry that has taken renewables seriously, and to build at the rhythm they needhuman labor is not enough. That’s where robots come into play, and they already have one that places 1,000 panels up to date. Saturn. Sunpure is a company that is dedicated to the integration of robots in the photovoltaic industry. We have already talked about them because the key point of a solar farm is not so much the amount of panels it has, but If these are clean. For example, they have a solar energy fed robot that is responsible for Keep panel ranks clean to optimize your energy generation. But they also have the Saturn. Presented A few weeks ago, this robot has a head that allows to raise a pallet of solar panels and an arm capable of taking those panels and placing them in the rails. Precision. Those responsible claim that it takes less than five seconds to calculate the position in which the panel should go, it fixes it with an accuracy of about five millimeters and the four -meter arm allows to operate with both large panels and very large guide structures. Its autonomy is 72 hours and claim that it is between three and four times more efficient than a human by being able to place between 600 and 1,000 panels per day. He is already working in some solar plants and seeing it in action is a hypnotic: Essential. This integration of robotics into photovoltaic farms is striking, but much less is new or original. In Spain we have Robots-Jardineros that take care of the plants, but we are also installing panels with Sunpure saturn robots similar. In the United States, more of the same. There they have maximum, A robot that also works tirelesslyraising and installing panels of up to 40 kilos in trial fields that, according to its creators, will be essential for the future of world energy. Reason does not lack, since the estimate is that 15,000 solar modules per hour are being installed in the US with a weight of 225,000 tons and the objective is to increase that rhythm by 2035 to 50,000 panels per hour. 24/7. The problem? We want more renewable energies, but there are difficulties in finding labor. That’s where this type of robots come into play. In the United States, 90% of solar energy companies have admitted complications When finding qualified personnel for the installation of these farms. With robots that have autonomy for several days, they work tirelessly thanks to sensors that allow operating in any condition of light and protection against water and dust, humans are relegated to “simple” observers, controlling that the machine does its work correctly. Dominate the market. Beyond having robots, whether the first or not, that China is investing in automating the placement of panels to increase the rhythm, responds to a clear declaration of intentions: that of Continue dominating the market with iron fist. The Asian giant has established itself as the greatest power in green energy, with investments of more than 625,000 million dollars in clean energy in 2024 (three times more than what was invested, and that were very focused on it), and that energy already represents 10% of its GDP. In addition to direct implications, it is something that implies that 90% of the Global Polisilicio Production80% of Lithium batteries and about 70% of the magnets of Rare earthall key both renewable and electric car is under its control. And this huge industrial infrastructure is allowing that China handles very interior prices for technology and has become the great supplier of the world in energy matters. And, in the end, it translates into the fact that it produces so cheap that the rest of the countries buy them instead of competing with their own developments. In Xataka | The tractors have competition in the field: El Solix, a solar robot that spreads herbicides, is the test

A copy of the most lethal roller weapon

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It is no secret that war in Ukraine has raised To drones as Combat tools Of the contests of the new century. And among all models, the Iranian Shahed that Russia It has multiplied With its own version it stands out above the rest. The United States has been trying to catch up in this sector, so it has just presented the non -manned device that will make a shuttle change to that paradigm shift. And yes, it looks a lot like Ukraine. Shaheds acceleration. It We count this week. Russian state television showed shocking images of An industrial complex where Kamikaze Shahed-136 drones are manufactured, designed by Iran and assembled at an industrial scale By Russia. According to estimates by German general Christian Freuding, the rate of production has multiplied by ten in one year, until allowing the possibility of launching More than 700 units In one night. At that rate, Moscow could reach the 2,000 daily releases before the end of the year. An unprecedented effort that illustrates a military doctrine based not on precision, but on saturation, which has forced the United States to seriously contemplate its own entry into the war of low cost and mass production drones. Tomahawks vs Shaheds. And here came the main problem. American military doctrine has traditionally focused on high -tech platforms such as Tomahawk cruise missile: a precision projectile with a scope of more than 1,500 kilometerssubsonic speed and a 450 kilos war head. But with a cost of almost two million Of dollars per unit, its massive use becomes prohibitive. In contrast, Russian Shahed drones, although slow and with more modest explosive loads, cost just $ 35,000 and can be launched in swarms. Even if 90% are demolished, as happened July 12 In Ukraine, the remaining volume is still able to saturate defenses and cause damage. The logic of “when the amount becomes quality” has gained ground. The difference in operational costs, rather than in benefits, is redefining the rules of modern combat. Lucas Lucas, the US model. Faced with this reality, and with Trump pressing (demanded a drone combat “like shahed, but for $ 40,000, no 41 million”), the pentagon has Presented the Lucas system (Low-Cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System). We are, in essence, before An American clone of Shahed, although Lucas also points to a FLM-136 varianta drone produced by the small Spektreworks company in Arizona, whose original purpose was to serve as a air training target. Despite its aspect similar to that of Shahed, its operational capabilities are something below: It weighs half, loads less explosive and has a lower reach. In addition, it lacks a production line comparable to the Russian, which hinders its viability for a massive deployment. His true cost per unit is still unknown, although he is presumably lower than the Tomahawk, but possibly much higher than the Iranian standard. JB 2 Loon V 1 Back at the 2gm. The idea of copying enemy weapons to produce them in mass is not new to the United States. During World War II, El País designed the JB-2 “Loon”a replica of German Missile V-1conceived to be launched from aircraft carriers and bombard Japan No risk pilots. Although the plan was abandoned after Japanese surrender, he left a lesson on the strategic power of serial production. Today, voices Like Palmer Luckey’sfounder AndurilThey advocate returning to that volume approach: producing thousands of cheap drones, such as Your barracuda modelto saturate the enemy. However, these products were not present in the recent Pentagon exhibitionwhich suggests that the institutional commitment to this approach is not yet firm. Ukraine as a test bank. Meanwhile, Ukraine has adopted the logic of volume with remarkable efficacy. The country plans to launch 30,000 attack drones against Russia in 2025, Combining models sophisticated with low -cost solutions assembled with plastic tubes and civil components. Its hybrid and pragmatic approach is redefining expectations about air power in asymmetric conflicts. Faced with this dynamic, the United States Find laggingboth in industrial capacity and in strategic mentality, still trapped between the paradigm of high expensive precision and the reality of a war that rewards replicable simplicity. Scale revolution. In the background, something we have coming counting These months. The appearance of drone swarms Cheap and effective It is transforming contemporary air war, demanding traditional powers a deep review of their weapons systems and defense industries. While the pentagon has reacted with initiatives Like Lucasits limited performance and origin as training drone indicates more a symbolic response than a real solution to the challenge raised by Russia and Iran. In this new scenario, where the cost and scale are decisive, Washington must decide whether he is willing to leave his elitist precision war model in favor of An adapted strategy to the fighting of the 21st century, even if it is copying, as already done in the wars of the twentieth century. Otherwise, it will continue Arriving late to a contest that is already fought in swarms. Image | US Navy, x In Xataka | A huge secret factory is tilting the balance in the Ukraine War. Russia is multiplying a relentless army In Xataka | It is not that the war is asymmetric, is that Russia is attacking with thermobárica and Ukraine with pellet shaheds with pellets

China has attacked a German plane with a laser weapon

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The Red Sea is has become In one of the more volatile foci of the current geopolitical map, marked by constant attacks From the hutis to commercial ships in retaliation for the war in Gaza, the growing militarization of strategic routes and a complex SInterests between powers such as Iran, the United States, China and the European Union. And in the midst of this scenario more and more tense, maritime security missions can face challenges that go beyond conventional attacks. The last one has been as unclassifiable as extremely dangerous. Laser climbing. On July 2, 2025, a German surveillance plane was attacked with a laser For a frigate from the Navy of the Popular Army of Liberation (Plan) while participating in a routine mission off the Coast of Yemen. The aircraft, a Beechcraft King Air 350 operated by civil contractors from Yibuti and with German military personnel on board, he was fulfilling support functions within the ASPIDES OPERATION of the European Union, destined to Protect navigation In the Red Sea in front of Hutis attacks. According to them German authoritiesthe Chinese ship had already been previously sighted In the area, but this time he launched the beam without prior notice, forcing the mission to abort and return based. The Berlin government has responded firmlyconvening the Chinese ambassador to express their protest and qualifying the act of “totally unacceptable” to endanger the staff and hinder international operations. Repeated pattern The incident It is not an isolated fact. Since 2018, the Chinese Navy has been accused in several occasions to use laser weapons against military aircraft from the United States, Australia and the Philippines in different scenarios Strategic, from Yibuti to the South China Sea. In all cases, light beams, although without immediate destructive impact, were used with intentions of harassment, disorientation or intimidation, and some caused mild eye damage and disruption of optical sensors. The situation evokes especially A 2018 case In which two American pilots suffered injuries for a Chinese military laser while operating from the base in Yibuti, the same area from which the German plane attacked took off. The code for unexpected meetings in the sea (Cues), signed by China, Explicitly prohibits These practices for their risk of physical damage and military escalation, but its breach has become an unofficial tactics of the plan in scenarios where geopolitical friction is high. Laser boom and naval proliferation. The use of laser technology on board wars It is not exclusive From China, but its systematic and aggressive deployment is an alert signal. The proliferation of these systems, which vary from simple dazzling manuals up to Laser cannons capable of disabled sensors, drones and Antibheque missilesis part of a growing trend in contemporary marine. China has incorporated These devices to various types of vessels, including amphibious ships of type 071 classin parallel to the development of similar systems by the American Navy and other powers. What distinguishes the plan is your willingness to use them in peace time for the purpose of harassment, with tensions that touch the threshold of the conflict without formally crossing it. The possibility that these incidents are repeated or climb especially to European countries whose naval presence in distant waters has increased in response to new global threats. Geostrategy in the Red Sea. The growing Chinese influence in the Red Sea adds a disturbing nuance to the incident. Since 2008, the plan maintains a continuous naval presence in The Gulf of Adénbacked by your Permanent base in Yibuti. Recently, Beijing has reached An understanding With the hutis to guarantee the safe step of Chinese commercial ships through the Red Sea, while other international actors face systematic attacks. This ambiguous position allows China to present as a stability guarantor in the region, while hindering with unstalled hostility Maritime security missions led by the West, such as ASPIDES OPERATION. The incident with the German plane can be read, in that sense, as a form of indirect pressure to discourage the European military presence in waters now considered vital for Beijing’s strategic interests. Silent expansion. Beyond the Red Sea, the European fear of Chinese expansion is not limited to the naval field. Continent authorities have expressed their growing concern for Beijing’s influence on critical infrastructure, transport routes and geostrategic areas such as The Baltic either Arctic. In that context, the German response (formally convene the Chinese ambassador) represents a diplomatic gesture unusual For Berlin, more traditionally prone to equilibrium than to direct confrontation. However, in the face of a potential aggression against European military personnel and a repeated pattern of Chinese naval harassment, the measure acquires a symbolic value: it indicates that European patience against the erosion of fundamental international standards It has a limit. Diffuse red line. Although It has not been confirmed If the laser used in the attack was of high power or material damage has been detailed, the very involvement of a Chinese military system against a European aircraft in official mission feels a preceding worrying. As the Red Sea becomes an increasingly complex scenario (with Iran, the Hutis, the United States, Europe and now China playing parallel and contradictory roles), the use of silent weapons, Like the lasersis emerging as the perfect tool to inflict deterrence without firing a bullet. If you want also, each of these Pulses Invisible tense a little more the thread of regional stability and threatens to turn the Red Sea into a new gray area of ​​military competence. Image | Pla, China Military Online In Xataka | The “trick” of modern wars: how US ships repelled drones in the Red Sea without shooting a single shot In Xataka | China has ordered its ships to turn around in Ormuz: what reveals the silent withdrawal of its oil tankers

The oil market is so broken that Spain already prepares its great weapon to fix it: remove oil via decree

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They do not run easy times for the olive oil market. Or rather, they run paradoxical times. In recent years, farmers had to deal with bad harvests that raised prices and They punished consumption. Now they enjoy a good campaign that will overcome the 1.4 million tonsbut things are not much better. The prices they charge They have fallen so much that they have left them in a committed situation, with a Great hole In your income. Given that scenario, the government has decided to move and endow A ‘Nuclear button’ That, if necessary, it will allow you to stabilize the market in the 2025-2026 campaign. As? Removing oil if the harvest is very abundant. What happened? That the Ministry of Agriculture wants to anticipate a possible imbalance in the extra virgin olive oil sector. In view of The good prospects Of the 2024-2025 campaign and the fear that this abundance of fruit ends up impacting the Spanish market, the government has launched its administrative machinery to have a tool that allows it to re-may be rebuilt. As? Basically removing oil from the oil mills. Remove olive oil? Exact. The community regulations allow states to activate a “marketing standard” for the olive oil sector that “improves and stabilizes” its market. That general framework moved to Spain with the Royal Decree 84/2021which in turn contemplates that “when the conditions justify it” it is withdrawn as a result of the markets, reserving it for the next campaign or even dedicating it to a different use to that of food. The process, yes, is somewhat more complex and requires that the autonomies and organizations representing the sector be consulted before. And that is precisely what the Ministry of Agriculture has just done: open A public consultation so that those who want to comment on their order for the 2025/2026 campaign can do so. The observations can be sent until next Wednesday. And why do you do it? For the data that arrive from the olive sector itself. Although the crops of 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 were rather Parcas (666,000 and 854,500 tons, respectively), which contributed to the price of olive oil to be triggered in the stores, the current panorama is quite different. It is estimated that the current campaign, which started in October and will end in September, will leave More than 1.4 million of tons. In March the Minister of the Branch, Luis Planas, even He spoke of 1.42 million. There are who is even More optimistic and talks about major figures for the next campaign. And how do prices respond? If in 2023 and 2024, coinciding with the bad harvests, the price of olive oil came to be around nine euros per kilo in the case of the Aove, now, with a generous campaign, that value has been reduced to 3.59 euros. And so It is a problem For farmers. Juan Luis Ávila, from COAG, warned In May that while the consumer pays about six euros for the liter of oil, the producers receive less than 3.5 euros for the AVE, which would be below the cost of production in the olive groves. What is that fall? The million dollar question. Especially since farmers ensure that market prices are not those that should in current circumstances. “The data is overwhelming and alarming, since there is an unjustified lag of more than two euros per kilo between the real price at the origin of olive oil and the value it should have,” He warned in May Miguel Padilla, of the Coordinator of Agriculture and Livestock Organizations, COAG. To reinforce its position, the collective even presented A report which estimated that the Aove should quote 5.55-6.14 euros per kilo in the current campaign, far from what the olivicultores perceive. “Speculation Campa at ease”, regrets UPA General Secretary, Cristóbal Cano, who believes that there should be “a different pricaries in the market, according to the law of supply and demand.” What will the new standard be for? With its new order for the 2025-2026 campaign, the government wants to be prepared to “stabilize” the market with a clear strategy: withdrawing product. From the Ministry they advance, yes, that will only happen “if high production estimates are found that can generate imbalances.” I would be The first time That the Planas department activates the mandatory oil withdrawal mechanism to rebalance the market. What does the sector think? The EFE agency has spoken with several organizations, such as ASAJA, COAG, UPA, UDU or agro-food cooperatives, which the initiative see with good entrance. “It is absolutely essential to have all the prepared machinery. Until now we had not needed, but before a predictable good harvest we have seen the convenience of activating it, as simple as possible, to avoid the sinking of prices,” comment In DCoop. Not everyone is equally optimistic. In Murcia there are producers who They are suspicious that the oil withdrawal from the market to control prices is the effective solution. Images | Government of Castilla-La Mancha (Flickr) and Deoleo In Xataka | More and more giants get into the Andalusian field and in the olive oil industry. The last: Pepsico

Europe has perfected missiles for decades. His new weapon is designed to sacrifice before touching the ground

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Europe has been betting on precision missiles. He Taurushe Meteor or the Aster 30 They are a good example of this: expensive systemscomplex and refined to the millimeter, designed to get it. But the war has changed. It is no longer enough to have better missiles In it Aeronautical Hall of Paris, MBDA has presented Your answer. It is not a drone to show off, nor a weapon for surgical missions. The One Way Effector does not return, does not shoot: it is made to fall. And in that act, fulfill your mission. His role is to saturate. Fly in mass, force reactions, shoot alerts. Overwhelm the enemy based on volume. It does not seek to go unnoticed. Seeks to force you to react The One Way Effector does not fit at all in the best known categories. It is not a cruise missile, although it travels hundreds of kilometers. It is not a recognition drone, because is not designed to return. It is an disposable aerial ammunition, propelled by a small turbophah, whose mission is one: wear defenses. The approach reminds of the Shahed-136 Iranian that have redefined the Ukrainian front: Waves of cheap ammunition against very expensive interceptors. But MBDA has taken the idea one step further: greater speed, greater difficulty of interception and an explosive load would be enough to not be able to ignore it. Because that is logic. If the drone impacts, he has fulfilled. And if they demolish it, also: the enemy has had to spend a missile, activate a radar or turn on an alarm. The system is designed to operate in Salvas. We do not talk about one or two drones, but of tens thrown simultaneously from the ground or from the back of a vehicle. Each unit Follow your route via GPS guidancewithout the need for communication between them or coordination algorithms. They move in a group, enough to saturate the enemy response. Conceptual image of the One Way Effector It reaches speeds close to 400 km/Hy transports a 36 kg eye, equivalent to that of an artillery projectile of 155 millimeters. Has an estimated scope of 500 kilometers And a cost that MBDA describes as “a fraction of a cruise missile.” It is not stealthy, nor does it intend: its effectiveness happens to be visible, for forcing the enemy to act. If no one reacts, the drone arrives. And if someone does, it is exposed. The idea is that each defensive shot destined to demolish a position. Each lost interceptor reduces the response capacity. That is the game. The One Way Effector is not an experiment or an exotic prototype. MBDA wanted it to be, from the first day, a chain manufacturing product. To achieve this, he has signed an alliance with the French automobile sector that allows you to produce even 1,000 units per month. A Taurus missile To climb that production, the design has been simplified to the extreme. Body of compound material, commercial pieces, modular construction. No terminal guidance sensors or technologies difficult to maintain. His great asset is the volume. This does not mean that Europe is renouncing its precision arsenal. On the contrary: One Way Effector does not replace Taurus or the meteor or Aster 30. Is designed to accompany themto open their way. Taurus is a cruise missile that travels hundreds of kilometers and seeks to penetrate defensive layers with precision. The meteor dominates the Aire-Aire combat with its reach of more than 100 kilometers and its ability to correct real-time trajectory. Aster 30 protects airspace as part of a high efficiency antimisile system. But there is a common point: all are scarce and extremely expensive. Each launch is a strategic decision. The One Way Effector, on the other hand, is intended for the opposite: to be launched without hesitation. If the deadlines are met, the first test flight It will take place between October and November, and Production will start in 2027 With the first operational units. Images | MBDA | Saab In Xataka | Russia recalled a threat that appears in the war between Iran and Israel: the possibility of a nuclear disaster

When the British wanted to terrorize the Nazis during World War II, they chose a peculiar weapon: pump rats

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Think about the Second World War is to think of large -scale battles, tremendous operations and epic skirmishes. And, although it is true that there were imposing deeds, we are also tremendously influenced by cinema and video games. Because doing one spy movie or a ‘Save Soldier Ryan‘is’ easy’, but … and one above the inflatable tanks or of pigeons piloting missiles? That is more complicated. Because, In a moment of despaireverything goes. And if the Americans gave them to devise a bomb -loaded bomb To set the Japanese houses, the British be occurred Something that looks like a joke, but that made a lot of sense: filling rats with plastic explosive and waiting to be triggered in Nazis facilities. The Germans They were caught at firstbut far from being a fudge, it turns out that discovering the pump rats was what made the operation a success. Exploding Kittens Rats 1941 was a key year in the Second World War. The Nazis gave the green light to the invasion of the Soviet Union, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, the United States entered the war officially and began the Mass deportation of Jews to the extermination fields. There were too many open fronts and the war had just become a global phenomenon, but the British wore years fighting the Nazis. The first quarter was crazy, with bombings of the British to German possessions and intense German bombings in English territory, attacking cities such as Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and, above allLondon, who for almost two months He suffered night bombings. Apart from in the air, the war was fought on land, and one of the plans of British intelligence revolved around the industrial sabotage. Damaging the factories, Germany would lose war power, it is evident. Thus, the British Special Operations Office, or SOE for its acronym in English, devised a strategy which would consist in wasteing pump rats near German infrastructure. They would not put a “backpack” pump to the rat and leave it free out there, no: the plan It consisted In getting dead rats, open them on the channel, empty them, fill them with plastic explosive, place a detonator that would come out for what would be the anus and strategically locate each animal near the boilers of the factories and key buildings of the Nazis. The goal? That when a worker found a rat, he directly threw it into that boiler, turning on the wick and causing the structure to fly through the air, interrupting the Nazi war machine. That said, the truth is that it was a brilliant plan because it was easy to think that workers would not bury the animal or throw it out there, since it could spread diseases, that cremation in the boiler being as fast. And they got with a hundred of them. There was a problem: the Nazis intercepted the first sending of explosive rats before they were deployed. Far from thinking that the plan failed, it turns out that The caught was much more effective that what they could have achieved if the rats had managed to be thrown into the boilers. And the reason is obvious: the Nazis, when discovering the Artimañathey wondered how many explosive rats before that interception they could have placed the British. That sowed a more explosive doubt than the rat itself because the Nazis launched campaigns to search for similar devices and, if they found a dead rat, began to tremble. Would it be a rat or a pump? Although any exploded, the operation was never considered a psychological success for the general paranoia that caused in the German ranks. The possibility of such unconventional sabotage forced the Nazis to divert resources to counteract similar threats. In the official SOE archives, they detail that the device “caused considerable problems to the enemy, but not quite in the way it was intended.” In the end, it was an effective form of psychological war because there were Germans trying to counteract a non -existent threat. As concluded Soe himself, “the problem that rats caused to the Nazis was a much greater success for us than if the rats had really been used.” Today is an anecdote or an object of collecting, like the main image rat, sold In 2017 for more than $ 1,800. Also as a much less crazy idea than those of those pilot pigeons … or that of the incendiary bats. Images | Charles Merrell, The National Archives, Bonhams In Xataka | 80 years ago the US threw a bomb in Japan that nobody agreed again. He has just exploded at an airport

Waymo Robotaxis have become a weapon for police control. And in Los Angeles they are burning them

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What started as a protest against raids Anti -immigration in the United States resulted in bell battles in the streets of Los Angeles and the mobilization of 2,000 national guard and 700 Marines. This morning. Donald Trump has confirmed that he will double the forces of this first body and, before the doubts about your legality, has confirmed that 4,000 troops will be deployed of the National Guard. For four days, the tension has increased to the point of confronting against the police, attacking various shops and burn cars. And in the middle of this whole fight, there is a clear affected by protests: Waymo. Click on the image to go to the original tweet Waymo, objective of protests No t -shirt, with the face covered and waving a flag of Mexico uploaded to the roof of a completely vandalized Waymo car. It is undoubtedly one of the most representative images of the protests that are being carried out in the United States. “Sometimes an image says everything to say”, Aldo Butazzoni points out in its publicationconservative journalist who is following the disturbances in the street. Getting to the Waymo vehicle roof is no accident. The company that has active a robotaxis service in the city is being one of the companies that are receiving more attacks, seeing how protesters completely destroy their cars. Last June 8, A photograph went viral. He showed at least three vehicles on fire. The company raised the figure to five cars and confirmed that it temporarily paused the service before the protests. In Los Angeles Times They assured that the protesters came to launch shared scooters of the Lime company against vehicles to access the interior. In his photographs a person is also seen trying to break one of the front windows with a skate table. But why this virulent attack on the company? Beyond the obvious damage to urban furniture with the burning of these cars and the intention of making difficulties to the police work, everything indicates that the company is being hard attacked by the protesters for deeper reasons. Since Waymo launched, attacks on the company have been multiple. In July last year, a person was accused of clicking the wheels to 17 Waymo vehicles. But it has not been the only vandalism, the previous months caught fire and destroyed the company’s cars in Los Angeles and San Franciscowhere they also operate. “Waymo lacks humanity. It is expensive and politicians, who have encouraged it, use it as an excuse to stop financing public transport. I hope Waymo collapses. With these words, Elise Joshi, well -known climatic activist, his position against Waymo attacks these days in these days explained in these days A publication in X. The Waymo service has always been surrounded by controversy. Although they are already approaching the 800,000 monthly travelersthe company has had to deal with the opposition of those who see in the service an attack against public transport, one more tool of the great technology of earning money without using people and a problem in day -to -day mobility. In recent years we have seen, for example, how Erobotaxis services caused various mobility problems. Some of little importance, such as almost 600 fines that accumulated Waymo cars for parking where they should not in a single year. But also more serious, like Cruise’s car than parked on top of a woman hit or the vehicles that complicated the work of firefighters. Those derived from the impact of these robotaxis companies are very wide. To the point that there are those who have questioned If they are the cause of more housing problems in cities like San Francisco. Constant surveillance There is another great derivative of why Waymo cars are constantly attacked. Beyond the social or political positioning before the service, when someone vandates a Waymo car ensures that it cannot be used by the police. They point out in Time that police forces are using Waymo cameras recurrently in their research. Each Waymo I-Pace Jaguar has 29 cameras to control everything that occurs around. That makes them a powerful asset for the police. In 404 average They published last April that the Los Angeles Police Department This video uploaded to YouTube To ask for citizen collaboration when locating the driver of a vehicle that would have hit a person in an accident that had nothing to do with the performance of the Robotaxi. In that article, Waymo said that he studied in detail all the requests of the police and that he did not deliver images indiscriminately but in Bloomberg They already pointed out in 2023 that the procedure for helping these vehicles was increasingly common. In fact, the media indicated that not only Waymo has been appealed by the police when collecting information for an alleged crime. Order forces too They would have asked for images To Tesla, according to the economic environment, since their cameras are recording at all times what happens around them. In fact, Elon Musk’s company has been accused of record their own owners in their homes without them knowing it. “We have known for a long time that they are essentially wheel surveillance cameras,” said Chris Gilliard, a merit member of the Carnegie Council for ethics in international affairs to Bloomberg. “We are supposed to be able to make our daily lives without being persecuted unless we are suspected of a crime, and every bit of this technology eliminates that capacity,” he concluded. Photo | Paul Goyette and Waymo In Xataka | I have tried a totally autonomous taxi. This is traveling without driver

China is merging three technologies into a single competitive weapon. In the West we continue to see them as something separate

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In 2007, Steve Jobs announced that he was going to present “three revolutionary devices”: A music player with touch screen. A mobile phone. An Internet browser. Then he revealed that there were not three separate products, but one: the iPhone. China is doing Something similar to its industrial revolution. Why is it important. While Europe and the United States deal with 5G, AI and renewable energies as independent sectors that compete for resources and attention, China has merged them into a general purpose technology capable of promoting productivity in all industries at the same time. The context. The strategy “Made in China 2025“It focused on ten specific priority sectors: from new materials to transport equipment. Ten years later, China is world leader in several fields (high -speed trains, energy infrastructure …), but continues to depend on foreign technology in more sophisticated areas such as aerospace or high performance medical devices. In figures. China has reduced its Technological Import Dependency Americans and European: 351 Product categories in 2000 A 177 in 2022. In parallel, the United States and the European Union now depend on China for 953 categories of products, three times more than at the beginning of the century. What has happened. The approach evolved towards What Xi Jinping calls “new productive forces”concept that put in the center of decisions since 2023. He Third Plenary of the Communist Party in 2024 He stressed the need to integrate AI, new materials and quantum technology. The key: the deployment of advanced technologies generates domestic demand for them, creating a cycle that further enhances industrial competitiveness. Advances in communications, operating systems, clean technologies and biotechnologies improve productivity, safety and quality in other sectors. A virtuous circle. Yes, but. This bet directed by the State is face and risky. The allocation of resources can become less efficient and has obvious side effects. Although economic reforms have improved the standard of living of the middle classes, the model focused on industry and technology has damaged the mood of the consumer and its disposition to spending. The threat. China does not want to rebalance its economy towards consumption and accepts negative – national and international consequences – while pursuing its manufacturing objectives. This includes internal socioeconomic conflicts, commercial surpluses and geopolitical competence by technology. You will have to address these effects at some point, but at the moment its formula works: integrate technologies that others treat separately to create a systemic competitive advantage. In Xataka | China monopolizes rare earths. An enemy has come out of home: the smuggers Outstanding image | Josh withrs, Zbynek Burival and Solen Feyissa in Unspash

Ukraine soldiers are starting to carry scissors. It is the only way to face Russia’s most lethal weapon

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At the beginning of January the New York Times told which was no longer possible to hide in the Ukraine War. Before the brutality of the contest a technology had sneaked into Evade electronic war and enter the enemy field of both sides as I had not done before. The threat was destroying the lines, making attacks invisible and evading any attempt at interference. Now, that technology has become stronger and deadly in Russia: the optical fiber. The Russian offensive. I explained it a few hours ago BBC in a report. In the Ukrainian town of Rodynske, a few kilometers from Pokrovsk, the war has acquired an even more devastating dimension with the intensive use of 250 kg planning pumps and surveillance and attack drones. The recent impact of one of these projectiles devastated administrative and residential buildings, leaving behind a destruction landscape. Russian troops, unable to take Pokrovsk directly, have begun to surround it strategicallycutting supply routes through a siege that intensifies with every day. The immediate presence of Russian drones about Rodynske reveals that Moscow has advanced from the east, beyond the previously identified positions, displaying their weapons since recently captured areas. The unstoppable rise of fiber. Under that changing scenario, a technology has been perfected as the most feared weapon in the conflict: guided drones by fiber optic cable. Unlike traditional models, their physical connection with the controller makes them immune to electronic interference, one of the most important defensive pillars so far. Although slower and can be tangled (for example, in their passage through trees high), their ability to operate in closed environments, such as Inside buildingsand to stay hidden, each movement of Ukrainian soldiers converts into a possible death sentence. In that sense, Russia has taken the front in its implementation while Ukraine still tested themand although now tries to accelerate its production, the technological difference continues to incline the balance on the battlefield. Fiber cable anchored to a drone in Ukraine The front lines. This new type of threat has completely altered the dynamics of Ukrainian detachments. Soldiers as it is or came, from the 68th Jaeger battalion, They described the BBC How simple transfer to a position can be more lethal than direct combat. The pressure has forced the units to remain much longer in the trenches, without the possibility of rotation. Maksym, gunner of the 5th Assault Battalion, says that they could alternate every few days, but now there are those who take until 120 days in a row on the front. Fatigue, moisture, constant death and the impossibility of lowering the guard have redefined combat. Oses, chief of recognition, explained that Russian tactics have evolved towards small and mobile infiltrations: Motorcycles, quadrimotos, patrols of one or two men who penetrate enemy lines such as scattered pieces on a chess board. Pros and cons of fiber in war. Detailed it in a Interview for The War Zone Yas, a commander of the Ukrainian unmanned units (drones). Operate drones by fiber optic offers an essential tactical advantage: it allows silent control, without detectable emissions, and makes many electronic warfare systems obsolete. However, the system also presents limitations. Drone management It requires great expertisesince an inexperienced pilot can cause losses due to control failures or even unwanted explosions. In addition, the fiber cable can be easily broken or entangled, and technology itself is expensive and difficult to access (especially for Ukraine). Despite this, the success index of fiber drones to achieve and hit their goals Round 50%figure that clearly exceeds that of conventional radiofrequency drones. However, less than 5% of the Ukrainian drone park, According to Yascurrently uses this system, mainly due to the shortage of quality units and the saturation of local manufacturers, many of which, in the beginning, reversed Chinese components without fully understanding the operating requirements in combat. The asymmetric race. In that sense, Russian capacities are not only imposed by number, but by the speed with which Adapt solutions. Every time Ukraine changes frequency or introduces improvements, Moscow responds quickly, climbing his countermeasures in a coordinated way. He has done so with control channels and video transmission. In that context, fiber optic drones They represent a momentary tactical advantage window. Although in Ukraine ranges of 15 and up to 20 kilometers with drones of this type have already been reached, Russia operates models of up to 30 kilometers. Yas lamented to the environment that, except in the case of conventional drones, the Ukrainian State has not yet managed to establish A solid infrastructure of production and deployment for fiber optic drones. A gap that can determine the difference between maintaining defensive positions or losing strategic ground against the enemy. Endurance. In The BBCa Ukrainian soldier said that the fear of drones Invisible Because of the fiber he has led them to start carry scissors everywhere To cut the cables. Technology has already given enough episodes of authentic nightmare where drones have entered buildings chasing human objectives. Meanwhile, and although Russia has made important advances, the Total Take Donetsk It is still far from being an immediate reality. Ukraine continues to resist, but suffers the shortage of ammunition, the imperative need for weapons and a worrying lack of qualified personnel against a more numerous Russian army and with better institutionalized processes at the moment. Yas is clear: The future of the war of drones will depend not only on technology itself, but who is able to organize it and multiply it faster. Meanwhile, every drone that raises the flight with a fiber optic coil becomes a silent bet between life and death. Image | Ministry of Defense of Ukraine In Xataka | The Ukrainian invention that has allowed to repel the waves of Russian attacks: a 41 km fiber optic cable In Xataka | The problem of many to cross the border and flee from the war in Ukraine is not the passport. They are your phones

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